Flag and staff.



P. W. PRATT. FLAG AND STAFF.

APPLIOATION FILED NOV. 21, 1912.

Patented May 27, 1913.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

Y Inventor:

P. W. PRATT.

FLAG AND STAFF.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 21, 1912.

Patented May 27, 1913.

2 SHBETS-SHEET 2.

fiwentor:

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

PHILIP W. PRATT, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

FLAG AND STAFF.

Application filed November 21, 1912.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, PHILIP W. PRATT, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Boston, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Flags and Staffs, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to means for connecting flags to their poles or staffs and has particular reference to devices which will prevent the flag from becoming wrapped around the pole or staff, the connections be ing rotatable on said staff.

The invention is designed chiefly with reference to flags and staff's where the staff is to be supported in an upright position, although it may be utilized advantageously where the staff is supported in a somewhat upwardly inclined position by a socket attached to a window sill.

. The object of the invention is to provide an improved connection between a flag and its staff that will enable a flag to unwrap itself if the wind has carried it about the staff.

To this end the invention consists in the improvements which I, will now proceed to describe and claim.

Of the accompanying drawings :-Figure 1 is an elevation of a staff and flag embodying my present invention; Fig. 2 is a detail elevation of a modification hereinafter 'described;Fig."3 illustrates a structure similar to Fig. 1, but with flag counterbalancing devices which are more especially useful in connection with a flag which is supported in an inclined position, as by a socket attached to a windowsill; Fig. 4 represents a section on line 4.-4l of Fig. 3, on a larger scale and omitting the flag itself; Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 4, but illustrating an additional feature of my invention; Fig. 6 is a view similar to Fig. 3, but illustrating a modification hereinafter described.

The staff or pole 10 may be of any desired configuration or materiahthe flag 11 having the usual hem or reinforced strip 12. Secured to the pole or staff 10 is a collar 13 which is adjustable lengthwise on the staff by suitable means, such as a 'set screw 14. Above the collar l3is a movable collar 15 mounted so that it may slide longitudinally of the staff, a spring 16 being interposed between'the slidable collar 15 and the collar- Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 2'7, 1913. Serial No. 732,679. 3

13 so that said collar 15 may form a yieldmg support for the upper. portion of the flag as hereinafter described. The upper face of the collar 15 is cone-shaped for a purpose presently described. A lower collar 17 is adjustably secured to the staff in the same manner as thecollar 13. Connected to the reinforced edge of the flag by cord,

sewing or otherwise, are rings 18 which embrace the stafl 10. It is essential of course that there shall be rings 18 at the upper and lower corners of the flag, one or more intermediate rings being also employed as may be desired.

Secured to the flag is a bar 19 having an eye or ring 20 which embraces the staff above the yieldable sliding collar 15, the bar being secured to the flag by rivets and washers, or any equivalent devices. The bar may be flattened as indicated in Fig. 1

and have the eye or ring brazed or othera wise rigidly secured to it, or it, and the eye or ring, may be made of one lengthof wire as indicated in Fig. 2, in which the bar is indicated at 191 and its eye or ring shown at 201 It will be observed that the ring or eye ofthe bar projects therefrom at an angle that is acute relatively to the lower portion of said bar so that only the rear portion of said eye will be in engagement with its supporting collar. By rear portion I mean relatively to the flag itself, in other words, the portion which is substantially diametrically opposite the bar and flag. When the stafi is upright, the eye or ring 20, or its equivalent 201, is inclined downwardly away from the bar so that only the rear portion bears upon the collar 15. The upperface of the collar 15 being coneshaped, the area or surface of the eye or ring 20 bearing upon said collar 15 is very restricted so as to reduce to the minimum the amountof friction that would oppose rotation of the ring 20 aboutrthe stafi and upon the collar 15. a

A particular object of my invention is to provide the least possible friction that would tend to prevent free movement of the flag,

so that it cannot become wrapped around the staff. But without the bar 19 which would hear uponthe collar 15 over a somewhat extended area thereof due to the curved shape of the interengaging surfaces, and thus cause considerable friction, which would be increased under the weight of the flag. But this same weight of the flag, which of course exerts a pressure in a clownward direction upon the collar 15, causes the bar 19 to be held upright so that the ring 20 cannot sag upon the collar 15. By adjust ing either collar 13 or 17, or bot-h of them, the hemmed edge of the flag can be kept under such tension as to insure the action of the bar 19 so as to steady or hold the sup porting ring 20 in the inclined or angular position described and yet this tension of the edge of the flag cannot result in any tearing away of the connections, because of the spring 16 which causes the collar 15 to yieldingly support the weight of the flag. Preferably the upper ring 18 is located at suflicient distance above the ring 20 to aid in holding the bar 19 upright or in its steadying position, and of course the upper end of the bar 19, in this case, extends to substantially the elevation of the upper ring 18. The upper portion of the bar 19 might, however, be omitted, and the remaining portion set higher up so that the ring 20 would be close to the upper corner of the flag, the collar 13 and the spring and the slidable collar 15 being also set up higher on the staff. With such structure the pull or tension along the edge of the flag, under the influence of spring 16, will cause the bar 19 to steady the ring 20, but I find in practice that better results are obtained by having the bar extend substantially as far above the ring 20 as it does below it, because it then supports a portion of the flag and an upper ring 18 sufiiciently far above the ring 20 to aid in preventing the bar 19 from swinging or sagging.

I do not limit myself to providing the bar 19, ring 20 and spring 16 at the upper portion of the flag only, as a duplicate arrangement might be utilized for the lower corner of the flag. But since the greatest weight and consequent friction occurs at the top so as to oppose revolution of the flag and connections about the staff, I do not consider it essential that there shall be a duplicate structure at the lower corner. It is also to be understood that I do not limit myself to the use of the spring 16, as said spring may be omitted and the collar 13 utilized to support the ring 20.

In Figs. 3 and 6, the spring 16 is not shown, but it is to be understood that said spring, having a yieldable collar 15, may be employed to bear against the under side of the ring of the upper steadying bar.

To aid in insuring the rotation of the bar or bars 19 when the flag begins to move around the pole, and to prevent the flag from ever becoming wrapped closely about the pole, I provide a suitable counterbalance or frame projecting from the rear of each ring 20, as shown in Fig. 3. Said frame is indicated at 22 and is here shown as formed of wire bent to suitable form and rigidly secured to the ring 20 so that said frame eX- tends from the ring in a direction opposite to the bar 19 and flag 11. With such a device, especially when the flag pole is inclined more or less toward the horizontal, whenever the wind swings the flag aside in one direction, the frames 22 swing over in the opposite direction, following the move ments of the bars 19. The weight of the frames 22, although not great, is sutiicient to aid in causing the rings 20 to rotate on the pole under the influence of the wind acting upon the flag. If the flag should become quickly thrown over or about the pole, the frames 22 prevent it from wrapping closely against the pole, leaving a space into which the wind enters and acts to straighten out the flag immediately.

In the form of counterbalance frame illustrated, there is a center member or rod 23 upon which a weight 24 is adjustably secured, as by means of a set screw 25. The bar 23 may have graduation marks upon it so as, to indicate the point at which the weight 24L should be set according to the size and weight of any given flag. If the flag is a large and heavy one the weight 2 1 will be set farther out upon the rod 23.

For special gala occasions the frame 22 may carry a bell as indicated at 26 in Fig. 5, said bell being attached to or a part of the weight 24, so that when the fiag swings from side to side the lateral movements of the rod or rods 23 will swing the bell or bells 26 to cause a tinkling sound.

Instead of providing the bar 19 with but one ring 20, there may be two such rings projecting from each bar, as shown in Fig. 6. In this case the pole may have extra adjust able collars 131 and 171. With collars placed as indicated at 131 and 171, the collars 13 and 17 shown in Fig. 6 might be omitted, because the flag 11, connecting the two bars 19 will hold the lower rin 20 of bar 19 against the collar 131 and Wlll hold the upper ring 20 of the lower bar 19 against the collar 171. In said Figs. 3 and 6 I do not represent the spring 16, but obviously it may be employed in the same manner as illustrated in Fig. 1.

I claim 1. The combination with a stafi having a supporting collar, of a flag having an eye or ring to contact with said collar, means being provided for holding said eye with only its rear portion in engagement with the collar.

2. The combination with a staff having a yielding supporting collar, of a flag having an eye or ring to contact with said collar, means being provided for holding said eye with only its rear portion in engagement with the collar.

8. The combination with a staff having a cone-faced supporting collar, of a flag having an eye or ring to contact with said collar, means being provided for holding said eye with only its rear portion in engagement with the collar.

4. The combination with a flag staff having a collar secured thereto,a slidable collar spaced therefrom, and a spring interposed between the two collars, of a flag having a ring bearing against oneface of the said slidable collar of the staff.

5. The combination with a flag staff having a collar secured thereto, a slidable collar spaced therefrom, and a spring interposed between the two collars, said slidable collar having a cone-shaped face, ofa flag having a ring bearing against one face of the said slidable collar of the staff.

6. A flag having a bar secured to an edge portion thereof, said bar having a rigid ring or eye projecting therefrom at an angle that is acute relatively to the lower portion of said bar. 7

7. The combination with a staff having a supporting collar with a cone-shapedupper face, of a spring for yieldingly supporting said collar, a flag having a bar secured to it, said bar having a rigid eye or ring resting Copies of this patent may be obtained for'five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents. 7

upon the spring-supported collar, the said eye or ring projecting from the bar at an angle that is acute relatively to the lower portion of said bar.

8. The combination with a staff and a flag rotatably mounted upon said staff, of means freely rotatable on the staff, with theflag for preventing the flag from being Wrapped closely about the staff.

9. The combination with a staff, of means for rotatably connecting a flag therewith,

said means being directly carried by the flag and counterbalance devices for aiding rotation of the flag on the stafl without becoming wrapped therearound.

10. The combination with a staff and a flag having rings connected thereto and mounted upon said staff, of counterbalance frames carried by said rings, and adjustable weights carried by said frames.

11. The combination with a staff and a flag having rings connected thereto and mounted upon said staff, of counterbalance frames carried by said rings, and bells carried by said frames.

In testimony whereof I have affixed my signature, in presence of two witnesses.

PHILIP W. PRATT.

Witnesses:

A. W. HARRISON, P. W. PEZZETTI.

Washington, D. G. 

